It’s pretty fair to say that Diana – the film – was an unmitigated disaster. It would actually be quite unfair to say anything else. But while the critics were bashing away at their keyboard, submitting their negative reviews and sitting back, watching the slew of other derogatory reviews hit the net, spare a thought for poor Oliver Hirschbiegel, who had to read them all.

He said the negative press surrounding the film was "devastating, but when you make a film you don't think about the reactions" (BBC)

"In all the other places where it's opened - in Poland, the Czech Republic, Turkey and Slovakia - it's been very strong," he said. “I think for the British, Diana is still a trauma they haven't come to terms with." Okay, we get that you’re not delighted with how your film went down, Hirschbiegel, but we’re pretty sure the UK would have been ready for a good Diana film.

He also described the reception to his film as "deja vu, because it has the same reactions in the UK as Downfall had in Germany on release". See, the German director has had this before: audiences despised his depiction of Hitler in Downfall.

"I hope it is a matter of stepping back and looking at it afresh in a year or so, because it is a very British story and I am a very German director," he explained, adding that Diana "was the most complex character I have ever tried to depict - more complex than Hitler. The one thing they both had in common was they were born actors". We're no experts, but comparing Diana to Hitler isn’t likely to improve anyone’s reputation in the U.K, probably.